this wreckage

Tuesday, December 30, 2014

Back on
January 15th of this year, I posted a “review” of Tracy Shedd’s fifth album Arizona,
which was released in November of last year.I put “review” in quotes, because it was really some kind of attempt to
capture the feel of the album without the usual rundown of hyperbole.It was framed as a letter to a long lost
flame from a long time ago, who, rumor had it, was struggling with debilitating
depression.It was part album review,
part letter in earnest, and part fiction.It felt wrong the moment I posted it, but decided to stick with it
hoping that it would seem better in retrospect (you can see the mess here).But, as I listen to this album for about the 3,000th time
right now, after contemplating my favorite records of the year (see here), I thought I’d revisit and try to
correct – or maybe make things worse.

This 2013
album turned out to be my favorite album of 2014.This is in large part due to the fact that it
speaks to me in a deeply personal way.These songs are about a good many things, but I have tended to decipher
the bulk of these as a message of support to someone in crisis.The song “Control” addresses suicide
directly.Shedd pleas to a person on the
verge by simply saying to them “don’t end it all tonight.”It doesn’t get more direct than that, nor
does it ever fail to send shivers down my spine.This direct communication may be part of why
this album has been so powerful for me.Shedd conveys a comfortable environment that’s about appreciating those
we love around us (“and I’ll miss you
when you’re gone” – “Take a Ride”), and the memories that can carry us
through the worst of times (“Boats,” “Million Pictures”), and by giving a
genuine heart to heart plea to someone to not throw all of these things away,
as in “Control” and “You’re No Fool,” her music and lyrics act as a guiding
light to those of us who are genuinely in dark places.She says the things that need to be heard –
the things that more often than not are not ever conveyed.How does one broach the subject of depression
to their friends and family?How does
one ask for help?How does one help
someone in need?It’s not as easy as it
seems like it should be.

This record
is not only lyrically direct, but also musically.These songs are stripped down to mainly the
twin acoustic guitars of Tracy Shedd and her husband James Tritten.Their
interplay is seamless.Tritten plucks
out clear, memorable, and fully realized guitar melodies – making the spare
arrangements seem greater than the sum of their parts, yet not so much so that
the personal nature of Shedd’s lyrics gets buried in the mix.This album feels and sounds like a few really
talented friends gathered right in front of you playing amazing songs.Her choice of covers (The Magnetic Field’s early classic “Candy” and Sonic Youth’s breakthrough steamroller “Teenage Riot”) is
remarkable as well.These are songs that
have always resonated with me and have provided strong memories, yet framed in
this sparse environment “Teenage Riot” is like a brand new song.

The quiet
solitude of the opening “Sweet Talking” is a concise love song that covers the
joy of being with a loved one and the hope for it to continue all the way till
death in a meager two and a half minutes.Likewise, the beautiful “Sing to Me” balances between both the closeness
needed in life and the despair of death.This dichotomy continues on “Friday Night at Einstein’s” – a story about
losing oneself on the dance floor (reminding thematically of The Sundays’ flowing “She”) that is
both life-affirming and lonely.Elsewhere
the lighter touch of the duet “All the Little Things” brightens the overall
feel of the record, as does the chorus of the soul searching “Million
Pictures,” and the summery and hummable “Broken Arrows,” who’s mantra of “you
can die trying / or you can die with a broken heart” is still a rallying cry
that resonates and reminds to keep on giving this shit show an effort.

This redo
plus the strange letter review from January may together make this review a
little more complete, but I’m afraid I’m still missing the mark (part of the reason in general why I may give this writing about music hobby a permanent rest).Simply put, and probably all I’ve needed to
say is: Arizona is an album that is humble and
subtle, but one of great magnitude and impact.I cannot recommend this with any greater enthusiasm.

This year I
have finally chosen not to rank my favorite albums of the year, but instead
present them in alphabetical order.Consider this a 20-way tie for #1.As always, I’d love to hear what everyone else was listening to for the
past year.Feel free to share your picks
in the comments section below.

Monday, December 22, 2014

Oh my, did I
love China Drum from the mid-90s or so until they disappeared from view a few
years later!All of their incredible
singles and EPs leading up to their 1996 debut Goosefair were so stuffed with energy, excitement, and unstoppable
hooks!Don’t even get me started on
their frantic and absolutely electric second album Self Made Maniac, where the songs all flowed into one another –
turning it into an album that could not be turned off.Doing so was a massive crime (there was a
third album under the moniker The Drum,
which I missed entirely).The 90s was
when the UK punk scene exploded with amazing bands like China Drum, Midway Still,
Leatherface, Mega City Four, and Compulsion
and unlike here in the US, they were all unique in their own ways – avoiding
the sameness of the punk-pop Warped Tour
sound that wore out its welcome the second the Warped Tour was conceived.These UK bands were heavier, more
substantive and gifted with better songs.But this isn’t about who was better, this is about the fact that Midway
Still rejoined the fold a few years back with new material, and now, 25 years
after they began kicking ass, China Drum have graced us once again with some
new music – this simple limited edition two song 7” single.

The original
trio is back, but now bolstered with a second guitarist and a new drummer to
allow singer Adam Lee to be out in
front (I don’t know how Lee sang and played those frantic songs live, even
though I witnessed it once at the Satyricon
here in Portland).“Water” kicks in with some muscular mid tempo
drums and serious power chords letting us know that they are back to rock.Each verse grinds along open and spacious,
before the huge chorus kicks in with buzzing guitars and even some female
background vocals from Kate Stephenson,
the new drummer.This is the “sound of
water rushing past your ears” – refreshing as it washes over you.

On the flip,
“Kitty’s Burn” returns the band to their speedier selves and another one of those
killer sing-along choruses.For a three
minute song, it manages to be both hyper catchy, off-kilter with stuttering
drum fills between lines during each verse, and dynamic with a tempo changing
bridge.

This is a
solid reintroduction to a much missed band.Now let’s see what happens next.I sure hope this means they will continue to offer us new material.Now, I’ve gotta go crank up the old
collection and jump around the room.Excuse me.

Thursday, December 18, 2014

As the year has progressed, several
great singles and EPs have been released for which I have written reviews or
should have written reviews.I’ve waited
for many of these bands to go ahead and release new full length albums before
offering my thoughts, but several have not yet materialized.So, over the next week or two, I hope to
share my enthusiasm for some great singles that have come along during 2014
that I’ve neglected to share.

The 7777777 7” singles club on the mouthful
Where It’s At Is Where You Are Records
has provided several excellent records in just a few short years.That small UK label was already making a name
for itself in the indie circles, but now with these 7 annual singles being
released each year as limited edition picture discs and a high quality variety
of artists such This Wreckage favorites as Allo
Darlin,’Eux Autres, Standard Fare, and My Favorite, I think I have been remiss in not yet signing up.

Unfortunately,
I am not a subscriber and was too slow to pick up The School’s entry into the 7777777 scene, but luckily, all of this
great music is available via download.If anyone actually reads these music reviews I write, they’ll know that
I love me some 60s girl group styled pop!And The School has been perfecting this sound for several years
now.Their second album, 2012’s Reading Too Much Into Things Like Everything,
was my #36 pick for best records of the year.Liz Hunt’s naïve and
plaintive, yet sweet vocals and words evoke simple times from our younger days,
when worries were about crushes and who’s seeing who.

The formula
has not changed one iota here, but this versatile and oddly huge band (eight
piece last I checked) makes simple pop music that is so spot on perfect, it
could be direct from an early 60s date night movie.The A-side, “When I Fall in Love,” begins
with acoustic guitar strums, Hunt’s voice and tambourine splashes, before
jumping jauntily into handclaps and a super catchy song espouses her
determination that today is the day that she will fall in love and it will be
eternal.Wouldn’t that be nice?Well, here it is.Excellent!

The B-side
gives us a flowing melancholic song guided by organs, strings, and an excellent
trumpet solo, as Liz begs to be with her guy through troubled times.This band’s strength is their simplicity and
versatility.They seem to be able to
pull off any kind of instrumentation flawlessly, without ever overwhelming the
song itself.Now, does this mean there’s
a new album coming soon?

Wednesday, December 17, 2014

As the year has progressed, several
great singles and EPs have been released for which I have written reviews or
should have written reviews.I’ve waited
for many of these bands to go ahead and release new full length albums before
offering my thoughts, but several have not yet materialized.So, over the next week or two, I hope to
share my enthusiasm for some great singles that have come along during 2014
that I’ve neglected to share.

Every time a
new record is released on Sacramento
label Test Pattern Records, I get
the sense that I need to at least visit that city, if not move there.I see the wonderful John Conley (Holiday Flyer,
California Oranges, Desario) designed record sleeves and
hear the great music coming out of that city and see show lineups to die for
listed on social media and I think to myself – “What’s happening down
there?”

“Weekend” is
a perfect little 7” single to follow-up last year’s Arts & Leisure debut LP ChooseYour Adventure (my #27 pick for 2013).Arts & Leisure rose quickly from the end of veteran band Baby Grand, whom I had just learned of
a few years back and was just getting involved with their cool, breezy
sound.Now they’ve got a very basic
old-fashioned straight-forward pop sound and it proves that if done right, it can
sound fresh every time.

The A-side,
“Weekend,” is as straight-forward musically as a band can get with its simple
mid-tempo drum pattern and walking bass line, buzzing twin guitars and Gerri White’s breathy voice enhanced by
Becky Cale’s harmonies.There’s nothing that stands out to describe
about the song except that it sounds great, is memorable, and reminds of sunshine.Maybe the fact that the lyrics tend more
towards something from The Jesus and
Mary Chain’s Darklands than a California beach party is
a cool unexpected twist.I’m a sucker
for the girl groups and rainy day bleakness, so this will win out every time!

Likewise,
the B-side, “Over You,” cruises along with a similar vibe.The vocals are more emphatic, as the killer
chorus lets us know that they are “done crying over you.”If one is to be dumped, there’s worse ways to
be let go than by a catchy tune.

This is a
nice introduction to the band, but don’t let their debut go by the wayside – go
out and get that one too!

Tuesday, December 16, 2014

As the year has progressed, several
great singles and EPs have been released for which I have written reviews or
should have written reviews.I’ve waited
for many of these bands to go ahead and release new full length albums before
offering my thoughts, but several have not yet materialized.So, over the next week or two, I hope to
share my enthusiasm for some great singles that have come along during 2014
that I’ve neglected to share.

1998 was the
last year that I subscribed to the weekly trade magazine CMJ (College Music Journal).It was a ridiculous subscription for someone
like me.It’s for college radio
stations, and was incredibly expensive, yet I would somehow scrape together
enough money to renew for seven lean years.Why was it such a draw for me?Simply because the magazine gave me reviews of hundreds of new records
each week, provided me with CD samplers of music from new music, kept me up to
date with the latest and greatest imports and upcoming releases – enough to
keep a fanatic attached to his addiction.Every so often, a free CD would come along with an issue, aside from the
regular sampler.Most of these were
pretty terrible, but two very important and memorable free CDs caught my
attention.The first one was a powerful shoegaze
/ dream pop EP from Los Angeles
band The Autumns (Suicide at Strell Park, 1997), which led
to a decade long search for their sporadic and often difficult to find
albums.Meanwhile, the other free CD was
from a San Francisco
pop band named Julie Plug with their
1998 debut album Starmaker.Starmaker
has been a regular visitor to my CD players pretty much ever since (has it
really been 16 years?!).It is a shiny,
bright, and immaculately played pop rock album, highlighted by the absolutely
adorable vocals from Des De Leon and
all kinds of memorable songs that sit somewhere (I struggle with comparisons
sometimes, but what other tools do I have that might invoke a relatable
reference?) between The Sundays
(especially vocals), the later poppier / less political (and popular) Cranberries, The Popguns (older band / recent discovery – see here) and the wonderful Dina D’Alessandro (see gushing review here) and her band The Beautiful Things.Julie
Plug had a second album in 2003, Whatever
You Need, but for some reason it never connected with me the same way, and
then they completely disappeared from my radar.

So, while I
go and put the Starmaker CD next to
my car keys in order to make sure I get it onto the stereo tomorrow morning, I
have to tell you about how Des De Leon Nicolas and Julie Plug guitarist Terry Nicolas and pretty much the rest
of the second LP Julie Plug lineup are back with a new band and four new songs
that are easily the equal, if not better than anything they’ve shared before!Leave it to the excellent Spanish label Elefant Records to find this obscure
band and expose them to a larger audience and I’m so thankful to have their
delightfully delectable music back in my life.

The A-side
opens with the incredibly catchy “Fool of a Kind,” which is so bright and sunny
and jaunty musically, yet filled with a melancholic overtone.Des De Leon sings of her heartbreak from
failing relationship and her foolishness for not wanting to let go, all awash
in shimmering organ hums, piano, wonderfully textural guitars, a jaunty rhythm
section, and chorus emphasizing horn section that really adds swing to this
instant classic.Next up is the upbeat “Big Sur,” which takes us on a lovely private visit to the
beach with a soundtrack of perfect pop harmonies, gliding keyboards, and
splashing drums to enjoy along the way.

On the
flipside is the dreamy sounding “Boy from B-612,” which opens with a repeating
chiming keyboard melody, which sends chills up the spine.The mid tempo bass crawl and thumping drums
set the mood for this song of longing and loneliness, as Des De Leon paints a
picture of understanding and quiet support.Lastly, the wonderful horn section returns on “For the Camera Shy” – an
energetic breath of fresh air as she tries to pry a celebration out of a
reluctant recipient of her affection.

This is
another typically elegantly packaged 7” single (red vinyl) from Elefant and is
part of their “New Adventures in Pop” series, where they expose good music like
this (Just Handshakesanyone? My #7
pick for best album of 2013!).I hope
that Marine Life continue on with the label and get to releasing more music,
because this is such a welcome return!